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1965 Baltimore Colts season

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1965 Baltimore Colts season
OwnerCarroll Rosenbloom
General managerDon "Red" Kellett
Head coachDon Shula
Home fieldMemorial Stadium
Results
Record10–3–1
Division placeT-1st NFL Western (playoff)
Playoff finishLost Western Conference Playoff
(at Packers) 10–13
Won NFL Playoff Bowl
(vs. Cowboys) 35–3

The 1965 Baltimore Colts season was the 13th season for the team in the National Football League. The Baltimore Colts finished the National Football League's 1965 season with a record of 10 wins, 3 losses, and 1 tie, which tied for first in the Western Conference with the Green Bay Packers. No tie-breaking system was in place, and a playoff game was required to determine the Western Conference champion, who would host the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Browns for the NFL title.

The Colts were victims of the alleged Sports Illustrated cover jinx after linebacker Dennis Gaubatz was featured in late November. According to the article on the team's defense, the 9–1 Colts would soon clinch the Western title.[1] But the team was beset with numerous obstacles from that point on, not the least of which were serious injuries to both of their quarterbacks, future Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas and back-up Gary Cuozzo.

After it was ruled that veteran free agent Ed Brown had been acquired too late for inclusion on the postseason roster, halfback Tom Matte (who had played quarterback at Ohio State for Woody Hayes) was pressed into service behind center. Yet the Colts were a remarkably resilient bunch, and if not for a blown call in the playoff game, they would have advanced to the league championship game, which they would have hosted at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.

Personnel

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Staff/coaches

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1965 Baltimore Colts staff
Front office

Coaching staff

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Roster

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1965 Baltimore Colts roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Practice squad
  • None - N/A

Reserve

  • None - N/A


Rookies in italics

Regular season

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 19 Minnesota Vikings W 35–16 1–0 Memorial Stadium 56,562
2 September 26 at Green Bay Packers L 17–20 1–1 Milwaukee County Stadium 48,130
3 October 3 San Francisco 49ers W 27–24 2–1 Memorial Stadium 58,609
4 October 10 Detroit Lions W 31–7 3–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238
5 October 17 at Washington Redskins W 38–7 4–1 D.C. Stadium 50,405
6 October 24 Los Angeles Rams W 35–20 5–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238
7 October 31 at San Francisco 49ers W 34–28 6–1 Kezar Stadium 45,827
8 November 7 at Chicago Bears W 26–21 7–1 Wrigley Field 45,656
9 November 14 at Minnesota Vikings W 41–21 8–1 Metropolitan Stadium 47,426
10 November 21 Philadelphia Eagles W 34–24 9–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238
11 November 25 at Detroit Lions T 24–24 9–1–1 Tiger Stadium 55,036
12 December 5 Chicago Bears L 0–13 9–2–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238
13 December 12 Green Bay Packers L 27–42 9–3–1 Memorial Stadium 60,238
14 December 18 at Los Angeles Rams W 20–17 10–3–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 46,636
Note: Intra-conference opponents are in bold text.

Standings

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NFL Western Conference
W L T PCT CONF PF PA STK
Green Bay Packers 10 3 1 .769 8–3–1 316 224 T1
Baltimore Colts 10 3 1 .769 8–3–1 389 284 W1
Chicago Bears 9 5 0 .643 7–5 409 275 L1
San Francisco 49ers 7 6 1 .538 6–5–1 421 402 T1
Minnesota Vikings 7 7 0 .500 5–7 383 403 W2
Detroit Lions 6 7 1 .462 4–7–1 257 295 W1
Los Angeles Rams 4 10 0 .286 2–10 269 328 L1
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Postseason

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The Western Conference playoff game was played at Lambeau Field in Green Bay the day after Christmas and the Colts led the Packers 10–0 at halftime. The Packers, with back-up quarterback Zeke Bratkowski in for injured Bart Starr, tied it up late in the fourth quarter on Don Chandler's controversial 22-yard field goal. Video replays appeared to show the kicked ball sailed well wide of the right upright—and the reaction of Chandler confirmed as much. The kick resulted in 1) a re-design of the goalposts, and 2) changing the placement of an official directly under each upright on field-goal attempts for the 1966 season.

Despite evidence to the contrary, the official in question, Jim Tunney (later known as "Dean of NFL Referees"), refused to admit his mistake, claiming that the flight of the ball over the goalpost had been affected by the wind before it veered to the right. The Packers won the game 13–10 in overtime with a 25-yard field goal. The following week the Packers defeated the Cleveland Browns for the NFL title, their third of five under head coach Vince Lombardi and first of three straight.

Round Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
Conference December 26 at Green Bay Packers L 10–13 OT Lambeau Field 50,484 Recap
Playoff Bowl January 9, 1966 Dallas Cowboys W 35–3 Orange Bowl 65,569 -

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Maule, Tex (November 29, 1965). "Heroes without headlines". Sports Illustrated. p. 30.
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